1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to bio-nanotechnology and particularly to a method of synthesizing naringenin nanoparticles for safe antioxidant therapy.
2. Description of the Related Art
Cadmium (Cd) is a non-essential toxic heavy metal and can be found at elevated levels in water and sediments of the aquatic environment as a result of natural and anthropogenic activities. Cadmium-related contamination of the aquatic habitat has greatly increased in the last decades, resulting in an increase of cadmium deposits in tissues of aquatic organisms. It has been found that accumulation of heavy metals including Cd in fish can trigger the production of reactive oxygen species (ROS) such as superoxide anion radical, hydrogen peroxide, hydroxyl radical, singlet oxygen, lipid hydroperoxide and alkoxyl radical. These ROS react with susceptible biological macromolecules, resulting in lipid peroxidation (LPO) and antioxidant defense alterations, a condition best described as oxidative stress.
At biochemical levels, lipid peroxidation and enzyme antioxidant systems have great potential to indicate cellular responses to the toxic effects of Cd, and have been widely studied in fish as biomarkers of metal induced oxidative stress. The induction of metallothionein (MT) together with the antioxidant enzymes is considered to play a protective role against Cd oxidative stress and is one of the most widely studied effects of Cd exposure. Besides the more frequently studied biomarkers of metal-induced-stress in fish, another protection system is represented by the heat shock protein 70 (HSP70). It is believed that the induction of HSP70 is an evolutionary conserved response of the organisms towards exposure to pro-oxidants.
Chelation, antioxidant and herbal therapies are three strategies commonly used for treatment of metal toxicity. Owing to the intrinsic limitations and variability of efficacy of chelating agents, however, antioxidants, and naturally occurring antioxidants in particular, are more desirable for cadmium toxicity therapy. Flavonoids represent an example of one of the most numerous and widespread group of naturally occurring antioxidants that can inhibit lipid oxidation in a biological membrane. Naringenin (4,5,7-trihydroxyflavanone), for example, is a natural flavonoid, a glycone of naringin, and a well-documented antioxidant compound.
Thus, a method of producing eco-friendly non-metal naringenin nanoparticles solving the aforementioned problems is desired.